New Delhi: Acclaimed actor Pankaj Tripathi's father Pandit Banaras Tiwari has died at the age of 99. An official statement read: “It’s with a heavy heart to confirm that Pankaj Tripathi’s father, Pandit Banaras Tiwari is no more. He lived a wholesome life of 99 years.”
Born in Gopalganj, Bihar, the National Award-winner enrolled himself in the National School of Drama from where he graduated and moved to Mumbai in 2004. Tripathi did an uncredited role in the film Run (2004) and did several minor roles in films such as Raavan (2010) and Agneepath (2012) and in some television series including Powder.
In an interview with Hindustan Times in 2018, Tripathi mentioned, “My father wanted me to become a doctor. The place where I hail from — a village in Gopalganj in North Bihar — people, only know two professions: an engineer or a doctor. I am a son of a farmer. My village is [situated so much in the] interior that there are still no well-built roads there.”
On being supported by family for his acting venture, Pankaj told HT, “They didn’t have any unfulfilled dreams, which they would have wanted me to fulfill. The only concern they had was whether I would be able to earn rozi-roti. I told them that if I went to Delhi, I could even get a government job. Now, the thing with middle-class people is that sarkaari job sunke unhe lagta hai theek hoga. So my father said, ‘yes’.”
The final rites of the actor's father will be taking place on Monday. According to reports, Pankaj was shooting in Uttarakhand for a film, and is now on his way back to his village in Gopalganj, Bihar.
Pankaj's latest release is OMG 2 with Akshay Kumar and Yami Gautam. It has been performing well at the box office. The film on its tenth day has collected Rs. 113.67 crore at the box office. Notable actor Pankaj Tripathi has delivered some of the markworthy performances in films like Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur, Fukrey (2013), Masaan (2015), Nil Battey Sannata (2016), Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017), Newton (2017), Stree (2018), Ludo and Mimi (2021).
